A Day with Biff
by clapback
Summary: Biff's a busy guy – he's the mascot of the ARMS sport, its announcer, and is also one of the higher ups in the business side of the ARMS League. This story takes a look at what may be a typical day in the life of your buddy, Biff!
1. 7:00 AM

7:00 am

"Rise and shine, champion! Rise and shine, champion!"

Following those words was a loud, slightly harsh buzz from the officially licensed Biff alarm clock. A yawn came from the bed as a hand groggily smacked the head of the clock, silencing it. Biff emerged from his blankets, wiping his eyes as he gained consciousness. He turned to look out the window and was met with a beautiful, almost cloudless morning. A smile appeared on the little guy's face, he had a feeling it was going to be a great day! He hopped out of bed and approached his mirror. Given his stature, both the bed and the mirror looked comically oversized for him. However the ARMS League has paid him generously for his job, which explained some of the grandeur of his home…

Biff put his trademark orange mask on and eyed himself in the mirror. He frowned for a moment – something felt _off_ to him. It could have been because he was still waking up, but he toyed with the hand on the top of his head. It sometimes had a mind of its own. This morning it kept leaning to the right with Biff trying to position it back to the center. He grabbed it by force and finally moved it back to where he wanted it, though the hand made a terrible 'crack' sound with the movement. He opened and closed his fist to make sure he didn't accidentally harm himself. He did not want to face the day looking unkempt!

After getting his appearance back in order Biff approached a large door at the end of his bedroom. He pressed a button beside it, with it opening an entrance way to a large walk in closet. There were no garments to be found in it whatsoever. It was filled to the brim with all different types of bow ties. Some were from fans and friends, several were bought in neighboring countries, and others were sponsor deals with some of the associates of the ARMS League, that mainly being Twintelle and Ribbon Girl's respective labels. He looked over his selection as a frown crossed his face. Why did he have so many in navy blue? They all looked the same and it became expected of him to wear that shade. Just for kicks, he chose a red bow tie that better complimented his mask.

Biff actually had a lot of trophies from his career as a sports announcer. While some were literal trophies, others were smaller items that he treasured as such. On the way down to the main floor of his spacious home, he had photos of iconic portions of his career displayed. Many of them were dedicated to the long lasting friendship that he had with Max Brass, including several of when the commissioner relaunched the ARMS sport. Biff has forever been thankful to him for all the opportunities that the man has given to him. Actually, the wall more resembled a shrine to the famous boxer. Biff often looked at them as he gently hopped down the stairs. It was easier and faster for him to jump down to each step than to walk. At the end of the stairs were two large, nearly colossal sized bouncers guarding the entrance to the mansion. Biff was relatively small and innocent looking, which was a stark contrast to the looks of his bodyguards.

Biff put on a pair of sunglasses and a coat. He didn't even have to say a word or even snap his fingers – the guards knew exactly what he wanted and where he was going. They opened the door for him as the interviewer left his home to be greeted near immediately with a black limo. One of the guards came out with him just to unlock the door to the car. Biff got inside quietly as his escort reposition the rear-view mirror. Biff, with all the services he has done to the sport, had become… rather spoiled in the process. The treatment he received at his very own home, including the size and the luxury of it all, was the best example of this. He was eternally gleeful for it, but he had somewhat forgotten how easy he has it now.

The limo took the nearest exit to the freeway. Biff looked out the window as the quiet neighborhood drifted away as skyscrapers and other large buildings started to come into view. The biggest of them all it seemed was the ARMS League headquarters, with the top of it being the thrilling and renowned Sky Arena. On its off days, the giant screen would show highlights of the sport or quick advertisements relating to it. It was starting to look slightly dated as many of the images flashing on the display were about last year's Grand Prix and not the one currently in development. Biff made a mental note of this as he reached into his pockets, pulling out his phone. He was just about to make a new status update on his Twitter until his own phone caught him by surprise.

His phone rumbled intensely as he received a call from Max Brass. He nearly dropped it! The photo on his call screen was one of him and Max when they visited Buster Beach over a year ago. Biff accepted the request as it was unusual to receive calls from the commissioner, especially this early in the morning.

"Hi commish!" Biff smiled, taking off his sunglasses so he could look more clearly at the phone, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah!" Max roared in response. The commissioner was doing his morning exercises in his office. He had the unusual talent to incorporate the most mundane items in his sessions. For this particular one, he was lifting up his desk like it was the smallest of weights.

Biff looked at him confusedly, "So what's up?" There _had_ to be a reason.

"One little thing did come up," He replied as he forcibly put his desk down, making the majority of the furniture and items in the room jump slightly in its quake, "A bunch of scientists from the ARMS labs are pounding at your door, little guy. They said you owe them somethin'?"

Biff paused and thought about what the commissioner said. He wasn't sure what he was referring to.

"I thought it was worth a heads-up," He added, "Y'know how they can get weird and kind of intense all of a sudden."

"Yeah…" Biff mumbled, still wondering.

Max grinned, "I wanna hear all about what happens! It's impossible to keep a track of every stunt they're trying to pull," He then gave the interviewer a thumbs up, "Talk to ya later pal!"

The screen went back to his wallpaper after the commissioner hanged up. Biff looked up from his phone and stared off into the distance. He sunk into his seat, knowing whatever it was ARMS Labs wanted it couldn't be something good… or trouble-free.


	2. 8:15 AM

8:15 am

Once arriving to the ARMS League Headquarters and thanking his driver, Biff hurriedly entered the building to make way to his office. Biff all around had mixed feelings towards ARMS Laboratories. He could not deny that they have done a lot for the sport and for people with the coil condition, but he couldn't shake off the feeling that they couldn't entirely be trusted. There were some rumors floating around about questionable inventions and experiments being done. The fact that they haven't commented on these rumors and them being adamant on remaining secretive about their plans hasn't helped their image in the slightest. Because of this, Biff had tendencies to be cautious when interacting with them. Before entering his office, he looked at his secretary who was sitting at her desk.

"Are the lab guys in there?" Biff asked, wanting to get a better feel for the situation.

The woman looked up from her computer, "Yeah, they don't look mad," She answered with a slight shrug, "I did see them drag some items in. I didn't get a good look at them though."

With that info presented, _maybe_ it wasn't something serious. At least that was what Biff was hoping. They probably had some new ARMS they wanted to reveal. Suggesting names for the tools used in the sport was one of his favorite side projects. Biff smiled as he entered his office, though it quickly faded when he saw who he was greeted with. It was several representatives of the ARMS Labs. They often wore white suits which strongly resembled the actual coats used at their locations, which presumably made Max confuse them as legitimate scientists. Biff shut the large door and put his hands on his hips, eyeing them over. One of them turned to greet the announcer with a smarmy smile plastered on his face.

"Biff!" He greeted eagerly, snapping his fingers at him, "Looking great buddy, that red bow tie really works on you!"

Biff briefly looked at his bow tie before directing his attention back on the man.

"Okay, what's going on?" He asked dryly.

The oily grin immediately became a disappointed frown.

"Alright, we're only here for a simple request," The representative clasped his hands together, "Have you heard the rumors?"

Biff stood in silence, unsure of which one he was referring to.

"The one about us running out of money?" He added.

"Oh! I have," Biff answered, "I saw recently that the Labs are accepting donations now."

"Yes, and it's been getting some attention," The man replied, "But not the amount we want. We're thinking that possibly if the Arms League maybe helped market some of our items that can help our little situation."

The ARMS League and the ARMS Laboratory have a long, complicated history together. When the sport first began, the two were actually the same company. They were known as the ARMS Ministry and both sides often saw eye to eye on about everything. But when the disagreements started happening, they completely ruined the relationship between them. The info varies from fan to fan, but the most common explanation for what happened is that the Labs wanted to take the sport in a completely different direction that the other side disagreed with, which that half ended up becoming the ARMS League. Despite the bad blood between them, they're still strongly intertwined with each other. The majority of items used in the sport were either created or co-created by the Labs. The one wouldn't exist without the other. However, it was somewhat uncommon to see the League help out the Labs or vice versa.

Biff faintly frowned. They seemed desperate enough, but he had to remind himself that as of now he still didn't know what they were trying to push.

"Maybe there's something I can do at the very least…" Biff looked away from him briefly to think on it, "What's the items? Is it new ARMS, or maybe some memorabilia?"

That smile appeared on that man's face again. It wasn't one that stirred up confidence in the little guy.

"You're going to love it," He spoke eagerly, "It's the pride and joy of the ARMS Labs…" His voice was leading up to something.

At that moment, Biff noticed something about his desk. His chair wasn't looking towards him. His eyes immediately darted back to the man, wondering what he was going to announce. The representative directed his hands excitedly to the direction of the chair as it quickly swiveled to face Biff.

"…Helix!" He cried out.

The creature sat gleefully in the plush chair. He was smiling from ear to nonexistent ear. He had an air of being clueless about what exactly was going on, but seemed happy enough just to be there. Helix let out a sweet trill as he looked at Biff, while the interviewer was confused about the whole situation.

Biff walked up to his desk as Helix watched him, "You want me to market Helix?" He asked, "Or, am I babysitting him?"

The representative leaned onto the desk as he gave his explanation, "That's the magic of it," He began, "You're the mascot of the ARMS League, right? Well, that's what Helix is becoming for the ARMS Lab! If we can get some buzz about you guys being friends, then people will want to buy all our Helix stuff!"

Biff was staring at the lab experiment before that final sentence. He looked back at him with an even more puzzled expression.

"Wait, you're making Helix merchandise?" He found this a little hard to believe.

The ARMS Labs employee standing next to the representative handed him a large tub that was filled with some kind of lime green liquid. The man displayed it on the desk animatedly, with it making an audible 'thud' sound when it landed on the surface.

"We're calling it Helix Juice!" He proudly pitched the idea, "It's mild, but it's tropically flavored and full of nutrients! You know, our taste testers said it complimented your cookies quite well."

Biff was in complete silence. He could name a number of reasons on why making a drink based upon a known science experiment was a bad idea, but he grabbed the jug to better examine it. Regardless of what he was going to say, he felt their minds were already made up on the product.

"I, well…" Biff struggled to get his thoughts out, "This is all really sudden, before I decide on anything I think I need to talk to Max-"

Before he could finish his sentence, the two shoved more of the juice in his direction. Apparently it came in varying flavors judging by the colors which were pink, blue, and yellow respectively. They were a little too much for Biff to carry all of them, making him topple over as the bottles piled around him. Helix looked down curiously at him.

"If we can get just one shot of you and Helix with that juice," The man said, "We'll get out of your hair, or hand, for a while. We'll leave you to it!"

Biff moved one of the juice jugs from off his face and quickly sat up, "Wait, what?!"

It didn't seem like he had any say in the matter. Before he could do anything else, the Labs employees were already gone. They left as suddenly as they entered. Biff frowned as he stood up and looked at the multicolored drinks. They're probably just fine, but he still had his reluctance. He had no idea what that 'image' they wanted to be like. As he was putting the juices on his desk, he made eye contact with Helix. The office became significantly quiet to almost awkward degrees. He looked at him curiously, wondering what he could be thinking about.

"Have you tried it?" Biff asked, pointing to the green juice.

Helix looked at it and then went back to Biff. The jelly-like creature gave Biff a big hug much to his surprise. The announcer almost got submerged in the substance that created Helix. He gently pushed him away, gasping for air briefly. He appreciated the enthusiasm and the gesture, but there was one detail that was left unclear.

What was he going to do with him?


	3. 10:30 AM

10:30 am

The day began on a weird and unexpected start. Biff now found himself in the care of Helix. Much to his surprise though, he has proven himself to be rather helpful in the office. Whenever there was an item Biff couldn't reach, Helix would happily grab it for him. He liked having his company but occasionally he could be distracting. Slowly Biff was starting to find it a little difficult to fully pay attention to his work as plenty of it was focused on Helix, who was following him around like a lost puppy. This wasn't a huge problem however; at this time of day normally Biff did manual checkups at the ARMS League to see that everything was in working order. Biff's secretary gave him his clipboard, which was filled with various notes and plans for the month. He looked it over, checking several items off and making occasional comments to himself.

Biff smiled, "Hey, it looks like we're a little ahead of schedule for once!" He said happily to himself, "Though we are a little late on some seasonal items…"

He chewed on his pen for a moment, debating on what to do. In the middle of his thoughts he heard a noticeable growl. He looked down at his stomach and made the sudden realization that he hadn't bothered to eat yet. Biff searched the room quickly to find Helix, eventually seeing him next to a plastic plant. He was poking at it curiously, slowly tilting his head.

Biff ran up to him, "Hey Helix! Can you eat?"

It felt like an odd question, but it was better to be safe than sorry. The experiment had a blank stare on his face.

"Y'know, eating?" Biff pointed to his mouth, "Food?"

Helix than smiled and nodded his head intently. That seemed like a yes to him! Before leaving, Biff went back to his office to grab his coat and sunglasses from earlier. The majority of the reason why he often went out wearing this outfit was in an attempt to not call attention on him. Most people recognized this and seemed to respect it, but anyone who knew anything about the sport knew who Biff was… and what his little disguise looked like. Regardless it worked, but with Helix by his side there was a definite complication this time around.

"I'm going out for breakfast!" Biff said cheerfully to his secretary as he left his office, "Forward any calls to my mobile phone!"

An eyebrow raised as the woman watched him leave. Biff was holding Helix's hand, making them look like they had a strange father and son-like relationship. There were occasional stares as the two made their way to a local café. Helix often mirrored the same expression as he looked at the city folk. Biff didn't eat here often, but it was convenient because it was close by to the ARMS League Headquarters. The two waited in line quietly with Biff from time to time mildly telling Helix to stop messing with the décor or the furniture in the small restaurant. The announcer was having some difficulties looking at the menu. While it was by no means the other customer's fault, but the man in front of him completely blocked his vision.

Biff nudged Helix, "Hey, can you pick me up?" He whispered to the creature.

Helix grabbed the little guy and then stretched to the ceiling. The cashier called for the next shoppers, with Helix politely walking up to her. Biff smiled at her as if there was nothing unusual about the situation.

"I'll have the veggie omelet, and…" His voice trailed off slightly as he was still examining the menu, "With a small macchiato, if possible."

She punched in the numbers on her register. Helix suddenly pointed to an item on the menu. It took a moment for Biff to realize that's what he chose for his meal.

"Oh, and some red velvet pancakes please." He added.

He questioned if giving sugar to his gelatinous friend was a good idea, but he also felt if there was any diet restrictions for Helix that ARMS Labs would have been nice enough to share that info. The two excused themselves as they waited for their items. Helix gently put Biff back on the floor. He wiped off the substance that created the blob that got stuck onto his jacket. Biff's eyes widened as he noticed the translucent green material slowly move back to Helix and become a part of him again. He nearly stared at him for a moment until he heard one of the café's waiters approached them.

"We're terribly sorry sir, but…" The man seemed reluctant, "We don't know what that is or where it came from, but we are positive that it's against our rules for it to eat inside." He pointed at Helix, making a slight circular motion with his finger.

The somewhat strange duo frowned in response, but the two ended up going along with the restaurant's request. Luckily for them there was a small outdoors eating area for the café. This ended up working in their favor as it was a beautiful, warm day. Helix seemed thrilled by the littlest of things. Biff watched amusedly as the ARMS Labs creation appeared to be entertained by rustling leaves and looking at the passersby. It didn't take long for a waitress to arrive with their meals. Biff thanked her before she left, but his attention was mostly on Helix who was excitedly looking at his breakfast. After a moment of observing him Biff realized that all of this – the city, the restaurant, and even food – could possibly be new experiences for him.

Biff took several bites of his omelet and some generous sips of his espresso, "You don't have to finish all of that," He commented.

The proportions of the decadent pancakes were shockingly large. They had the appearance of a meal that was solely created to become viral online. This was especially obvious in regards to Biff's own breakfast, which the size of it was far more tasteful comparatively speaking. Helix grinned wildly before slamming his face down onto the dish. Biff jumped slightly in his seat and almost spat out his drink. The movement was so quick and sudden, but at the same time it did not surprise the little guy that Helix was unfamiliar with the concept of utensils… Biff collected himself before speaking out of a mild concern.

"You… okay?" He asked after taking another drink of his macchiato.

Helix raised his head up quickly after the question. The white frosting from the pancakes were all over him, with some of it smeared over his mask. He took a noticeably huge bite of his meal. He was already almost half way done with it! Slowly Helix swallowed his bite. Biff could see that he did indeed consume his food, but what he ate seemed to evaporate into the goo that is his body. The announcer winced faintly at the sight. He did not want to know how that worked or if Helix even had a stomach. Regardless, the creature seemed to be enjoying his meal. That's all that mattered, right? Though Biff was having a somewhat difficult time forgetting what he just saw. He looked down at his plate. He had hardly touched his omelet, but his appetite was already gone.

Biff reached into his jacket and pulled out a piece of paper that had several notes written on it. It contained info from his clipboard from earlier. There wasn't much to do that day, but it looked like that he did have some work that involved taking a quick jaunt.

"Hey Helix!" Biff awkwardly grinned, still feeling a little weird after watching him eat.

Helix looked back at Biff, letting out a curious warble.

"How does a little trip to the Spring Gym sound?"


	4. 12:55 PM

12:55 pm

After finishing up breakfast, Biff made some calls to get his private jet ready for a speedy trip. The Spring Gym was located in a fairly nearby city, but air travel remained to be the quickest way to get there on a time crunch. Prior to leaving Biff also grabbed a little fedora hat that he put over the fist located on the top of his head. While most fans were respectful of his privacy near the ARMS League Headquarters, it could occasionally be a different story in other parts of the world. Biff almost looked like a detective with his getup – a trench coat, deep black sunglasses, and his aforementioned hat. Helix tagged along for the ride, though his current caretaker wasn't sure what to do with him. He was slightly… _jittery_ after his meal. In the plane Biff would periodically look up from his phone to check up on him. Helix had tendencies to move in his seat or to stretch himself to better examine the layout of the aircraft. He eventually spent the majority of the trip looking out the window after realizing how far up they were in the sky.

When they landed, the two immediately hopped into a taxi that was specifically waiting for them. It didn't take long for them to arrive to the famous Spring Gym. It was decorated in the respective colors of its renowned fighter. The building looked large and impressive, but its appearance remained accessible and friendly to anyone who was a new comer to athletics. A few intrigued stares were directed at Biff and Helix. Biff, for how long he has been in the business, knew not to return any looks and to keep his focus on why he was here. Helix on the other hand promptly stared back, letting out some curious peeps. Biff firmly had Helix's hand in his own for more protection over the gelatinous creation, but after hearing his chatters he felt the need to move him aside for a moment.

"Helix, I really appreciate your curiosity and your zeal about other people," Biff spoke with some reluctance, "But… You can't go around staring at strangers. It's a little rude."

Helix's LED eyes blinked in response.

"Also, we're important people in ARMS!" The reporter added, "There's going to be a lot of fans asking you questions, or even trying to research you."

Biff struggled to emphasize how potentially dangerous the outside world was to this innocently unaware fighter. An idea then came to him.

"I have a game for you!" Biff smiled, "The rules are no talking to strangers, don't touch anything, and you have to stay right here." He pointed to the ground.

Helix looked at where he was standing briefly.

Biff held up his arms excitedly, "If you can remain there, you'll win a prize!"

The creature then smiled. He seemed to like the idea of winning a prize. Biff made the realization that he didn't know _what_ the prize was going to be. He shrugged it off for the time being – that was something to worry about later.

"Okay, the game starts now," Biff continued, "I'll be back in just a few minutes. I will let you know when you won your prize."

Before leaving him alone, the little fella looked back at Helix just to make sure he was following the rules of the game. He stood there patiently and waved happily at Biff. Biff let out a relieved sigh prior to heading down a hallway. The Spring Gym had several private training rooms available for reservation. Biff approached the first door and gave it a gentle, but noticeable knock.

"Come in," A voice came from behind the door, "It's unlocked!"

Biff entered the room and found Spring Man doing some minor exercises by lifting smaller weights. It didn't surprise him that the door to his training room was unlocked, Spring Man's a friendly guy and has always been up for some ARMS talk whenever. However, it was already known to him that Biff had plans to visit. The boxer playfully threw up the weights which promptly landed in his red athletic bag. Biff stood a little back from the sack, not wanting one of the weights to land on his feet. He looked up at Spring Man with a friendly smile as he pulled out his clip board.

"Sorry that I had to visit today," Biff spoke, "But this really should only take a moment."

The fighter wiped some of the sweat off his brow as he picked up the bag.

"Yeah, what's up?" Spring Man looked at him curiously, "Again, I can't apologize enough about my phone's battery dying out on me. I feel kinda bad that you had to travel all the way here for this."

"It's fine, it would have been a waste of today if I didn't go out and enjoy it," The announcer replied, his voice trailing off as he flipped through his notes, "Some of the marketers over at the ARMS League wanted to hear your thoughts about the valentine's day cards they've been working on."

Biff then handed him a sample.

"It's been "You put a spring in my step, valentine!" for close to two years now," He added, "They thought that maybe it was time to change it?" He shrugged slightly.

Spring Man looked at the prototype card. The art was vaguely different from last year's, but it was still the same concept.

He went back to Biff, "Actually, I was just thinking about this!" He grinned, "I do have a few ideas."

Biff clicked his pen and was prepared to write the fighter's proposals.

"Okay so," Spring Man began, "How about "You have a pizza my heart"?"

The commentator looked rather unimpressed. He thought it was a fairly funny pun, but it was too irrelevant for ARMS to work. What's up with this guy and pizza anyway? It seemed like a valentine that only he would find adorable. Maybe the boxer's other idea would be better…

"Or," Spring Man put heavy emphasis on the opening word, "I'm sprung for you, Valentine!"

The room became quiet. The young man paused for a moment, thinking about what he just said, until the realization dawned on him.

"Wait," He mumbled, "That doesn't really sound right…"

Biff was mildly amused, but he couldn't help to roll his eyes at what just happened.

"Um," Despite finding it a little funny, he didn't want to be completely rude towards him, "So, we're still going with the original valentine?"

Spring Man immediately looked back at him, "Yeah, that's probably for the best," He snickered faintly, though it was obvious he felt a little embarrassed.

After coming to that swift agreement over the phrasing of the card, there wasn't much else that was keeping Biff there. Both he and Spring Man were making their exits from the gym, casually chatting and catching up with each other. Even on his off days, ARMS was Spring Man's main passion and that often was shown well in many of the conversations between him and Biff. Biff liked the kid even though he didn't always have a good reply to all his comments or even questions. He knew that he was always eager to be out in the ring, so any upcoming piece of news was regarded as big deal to the boxer. Biff found himself occasionally being careful with his words around Spring Man – he didn't want to accidentally say who's fighting who or what ARMS that are planning to be used. He always had the impression that Spring Man was the type of guy who would tell a secret completely on accident.

Biff was about to head out the door but then his eyes widened. He frantically looked around the front room of the gym. Helix was gone! A complete look of panic washed over the announcer's face. He ran towards the corner where he left the lab experiment. All that remained of him there was one small piece of the jelly-like substance that makes his body. Biff picked it up and felt it around in his hand. It felt strange and unfamiliar… Yep, it was definitely something left over from Helix. It seemed that, whatever it is, it had difficultly moving on the carpet and got stuck in its fibers. Thankfully however it didn't stain the floor. Spring Man approached him, looking over his shoulder. He raised an eyebrow as he saw the worried expression on Biff. He hadn't said a word.

"Uh," Spring Man wasn't sure how to phrase his question, "Is everything okay?" He didn't know why this piece of green gelatin was such cause for alarm.

Biff swiftly looked back at him, almost as if he forgot that the young man was still with him.

"Have you seen Helix?!" He quickly blurted out.

It took Spring Man a moment to realize who he was talking about. It didn't entirely answer his original question. If anything, that only raised more questions.

"Wait, you have Helix with you?" Spring Man asked confusedly, watching Biff look around the gym in a hurry.

Biff let out a frustrated groan when his search ended up being fruitless. He was allowing himself to be defeated too easily when he noticed the slime from Helix move around on his hand. He got closer to it as an intrigued 'hmmm…' escaped his lips. It looked as if it was trying to go back to the rest of his body, but was currently lost and confused. Biff firmly held the substance in his fist, finally making his exit this time around. Spring Man crossed his arms as he watched him leave – he looked like a man out on a mission.

The fighter turned to look at one of the employees, "Was Helix here?" He asked out of bafflement.

The woman shrugged in response, looking every bit as confused as the mascot of the gym.


	5. 1:18 PM

1:18 pm

"Biff, wait up!"

Biff stopped in his tracks and turned around to see Spring Man running towards him. He was a little surprised to see that the fighter decided to follow him, possibly even joining him in his search. Spring Man paused briefly to catch his breath, but then looked at the reporter with a mildly concerned expression.

"What's going on?" He asked, "I wouldn't have guessed Helix was allowed to go outside… Or even do anything."

Biff only knew very little about Helix as a creation – he was a side project in the attempts to make the best boxer known to ARMS. There was a new trend of fighters, who were known as 'second generation' fighters, which were either non-human or did not have the condition such as Byte and Barq. Helix comparatively speaking wasn't that much of an outcast. What _did_ make him an outcast were his mysterious origins. It seemed that Spring Man knew just as much as he did in regards to the experiment. Biff felt rather annoyed at the scenario and didn't want to have a huge recap of the events of the day.

"I don't know," He said with some frustration, "I'm watching over him because the Labs wanted to make some kind of juice with him."

Spring Man was quiet for a moment then faintly chuckled.

"They're making Helix themed food?" He snickered.

Biff raised up his arms, "I know right?!" He was relieved to hear that he also thought it was strange.

With that swift movement, the jelly that Biff was holding slipped and landed on the sidewalk. It squirmed in its place. His eyes widened and promptly picked it up. It continued to wiggle around. It looked as if it was still alive but remained unsure of its location. Biff began to walk around in circles. Spring Man just watched, looking at the material closely.

"Is it supposed to be like that?" He then asked.

Biff stopped in his steps, staring at it.

"I think so?" He answered with a lack of confidence in his voice, "I've seen it act like that before. I don't really know what it means, though."

The gelatin continued to jiggle and slowly move around in Biff's hand. It seemed to be getting used to navigating around his palm by itself.

"…You could always call up the Labs," Spring Man suggested with a shrug, "They probably know more about this then we do. It wouldn't hurt to try."

That was a fairly good idea. After all, it's the least they could do after dumping their creation into his care. Biff got out his phone and dialed up the first number he had for the ARMS Labs. A minute went by and nothing happened – only a jingle of the Labs anthem played followed by a low buzzing. He hung up and immediately tried again, getting the same results as last time. Biff let out a tired sigh as he directed his attention back to Spring Man. It was becoming increasingly obvious that the little guy was becoming stressed about the scenario. Just to be friendly, Spring Man invited him along to lunch. That was the original reason why he left the gym to begin with.

Biff took him up on his offer. Maybe some of the reason why he was worrying himself sick and couldn't think straight is that he didn't eat much of his breakfast, so a nice meal was long overdue. The duo went an older diner that was located several blocks away from the Spring Gym. While it had seen better days, it remained to have its charm. It was lovingly decorated with memories of the past, with most of it being themed with the 1950's and 60's. Despite the laid back and kitschy atmosphere of the restaurant, Biff found him unable to relax. Throughout the meal he kept recalling the same number, receiving nothing from it. On his 8th try he let out an exasperated, loud sigh before face planting into the patty melt he ordered.

This caught the attention of their waitress, as she looked back at the two with a pitcher of coffee, "I'm assuming you want some more?" She cheekily asked, eyeing Biff.

Spring Man was slowly eating one of his fries, "No, I think he's had enough…" He answered, his voice trailing off.

The woman shrugged and left to attend to another table. Biff raised his head from his sandwich. It was the first time throughout the meal he even bothered to touch his food. He looked at his phone again, tempted to call them one more time. Spring Man frowned as he pushed his plate aside.

"This is probably going to sound bad but," He began, "Maybe right now it's for the best that you can't call them. I mean, they don't know you lost Helix and they might never know."

He did have a point. However, the problem still remained.

"Hey, worst case scenario, Helix will be found on one of those conspiracy theory websites," Spring Man grinned, grabbing Biff's phone as he typed in a web address, "Those guys are always super active."

He then showed him an article from one of those sites. It read 'Bigfoot found in Florida outside of local antique store'.

Biff raised an eyebrow, "I'm pretty sure that's fake." He responded wryly.

Spring Man pouted his lips, "Hey, it hasn't been proven _or_ disproven," He joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Biff circled his finger in the ketchup that was from his sandwich. Spring Man's smile faded when he noticed the disappointed look on his friend.

He set the phone down, "So… What are you going to do?"

Biff wiped the condiment off from his finger and slumped in his seat. The gelatin had been on the table the entire time they have been in the diner. It continued to move occasionally, but nothing has changed.

"That's a good question," He replied, "There's nothing else I can do but to look for him."

Biff thought about some of the past events for the day. He should have trusted his hunch when he felt giving Helix pancakes – let alone specialty, decadent pancakes – was possibly a bad idea. The poor thing is probably so hyped up on sugar he couldn't stay still. The two sat in silence, with Spring Man occasionally nibbling some french fries. Then the phone rumbled. Biff looked at his phone, preparing to grab it, until more texts were coming in. His phone was blowing up! Hopefully it was some good news. Biff entered the code and it immediately directed itself to the messages he received. The texts were links from various news sites, citing that Lola Pop was in town as marketing for her clowning career and for ARMS. Initially Biff didn't think anything of these recent articles until he looked closely at one of the images. He gasped as a look of hope appeared in his eyes, quickly stretching out his arm to show Spring Man what was on the screen.

"Do you see what I see?!" Biff said, with both an excitement and urgency in his voice.

On first glance, it looked like a fairly normal image. Lola was doing what she was known for, colorful tricks and lighthearted pranks on the street. It drove in a small, but curious audience in the picture that was a mix of legitimate ARMS fans and people wanting to see silly clown stunts. Spring Man was quiet, unsure of what he was looking for. Biff then magnified the image at where Lola's feet were. In the back, close to her bright red shoes, was another piece of gelatin that looked near identical to the one from Helix. The fighter picked up the residue and did a side by side comparison. The close up was blurry, but the colors were very similar to each other. It was unsurprising that Helix somehow found himself where an ARMS related event would be located, even if it was unintentional on his part. Regardless, it gave Biff a lead of where his gelatinous friend currently could be. Along with Spring Man as his navigator, maybe this wasn't going to be as difficult as he originally thought.


	6. 2:40 PM

2:40 pm

Luckily for Biff, Spring Man had a rough idea where Lola Pop was located. She was outside of one of the bigger malls in the city, which was a minor tourist sight. With her being a performer it made perfect sense that was her target. After all, with more people present that meant more crowds. When they found her she was taking a break from her comedic routine. She had a cute but small tent set up on the outskirts of the street she was performing at. It was bright and colorful with a circus motif – even if you didn't know Lola was in there, it was no surprise that it was a greenroom meant for a clown. The tent had no door, making Biff and Spring Man exchange some unsure stares. They didn't want to barge in, but to them there was no polite way of entering… The announcer grabbed the fabric and shook it, having it make a rustling sound in an attempt to catch her attention.

"Just a moment!" Lola answered with a singsong tone.

Well, it seemed to work. Biff and Spring Man looked at each other again, responding with a shrug. The young woman quickly shot her head outside of the two flaps of fabric that was the entryway of the tent. Both Biff and Spring Man jumped back slightly out of surprise. Lola's eyes immediately darted to Biff as a wide smile grew on her face. Biff looked at her curiously, but before he knew it she quickly grabbed him with her candy arms.

"H-hey!" Biff cried out, confused on what she was about to do.

With his small size, the reporter was easy to pick up and carry. Lola playfully tossed him into the air and juggled him like a pair of bouncy balls before gently holding him.

She drew him in for a big hug, "Biff, my friend!" She giggled, "It's so good to see you again!"

The clown was nuzzling her cheek against his. Biff on the other hand, with the rapid movements and the uncertainty of what just happened, looked rather dazed.

Spring Man gently gave her a smile, "Uh, hey Lola," He greeted, slightly waving.

Lola looked away from Biff and returned the friendly expression, "And hello to you too Spring Man."

She then placed; actually, more _threw_ Biff to one of the beanbags that was sitting in the right corner of her tent. The little guy flopped over the soft cushion, only intensifying his dizziness. Spring Man briefly gave a concerned glance at him, but quickly directed his attention back onto Lola. She sat herself next to her mirror, looking over her make up. Some of her blush got smeared after snuggling Biff. She took some swabs and started to clean up the mess while still remaining attentive to her guests.

"So, what brings you here?" She asked calmly, which was something of a rarity for her.

Spring Man gave Biff the once-over, he looked like he was out of commission for the time being. He cleared his throat and then explained the problem to the best of his ability.

"So… That's where we are now," He frowned after roughly telling her about the past several hours, "We think we saw some of Helix beside you on a photo we found online."

Lola's eyes widened as she swiftly turned her chair to face him. She bounced up excitedly and drew him closer to her.

" _That_ answers one of my own questions!" The clown beamed.

There was a brief pause as the two of them directly stared at each other, completely silent.

She then poked Spring Man's nose after the quick lull, "Boop." She chuckled after a short pause.

At that moment the boxer felt a little shy standing so close to her, he took a step back to get out of her way as she reached into the pockets of her oversized pants. She pulled out various items – small bugle horns, candy, slide whistles, toys, and then the old fashioned trick began of multicolored handkerchiefs tied together in a continuous string. Many of the gizmos were landing in Biff's general area, making him eventually snap out of his dizziness. He shook his head and picked up a rubber, sticky hand toy that was stuck on his head. He looked at it for a moment, but discarded it near immediately as he sat up on the bean bag. At the very end of the tissues the substance was there, holding on to the fabric.

"I saw it after my last show," Lola explained as she coaxed the goo to wiggle onto her hand, "I first thought it was some weird toy a kid left behind, but then I saw it squirming!"

She then tossed it into the air, catching it with her other free palm. Spring Man appeared slightly grossed out as he looked at her pockets and then to her gloves.

"Are you sure that's not going to leave a stain…?" He began to ask, his voice dwindling quickly.

"So then I thought, this must be something!" The candy clown continued her story, not noticing the question, "I was considering using it for something… It looks slippery enough to be used for a good pratfall, but you say this is a part of Helix?" She looked up from it; unsure of whom she was really asking this to.

Biff bolted from his seat and quickly approached the two.

"Yes, it's from Helix!" He spoke with urgency in his voice, "Be gentle with it – you could harm it!"

Lola was surprised by his reaction, realizing at that moment this wasn't a laughing manner. Biff reached out his hand and compared the piece he had with her's. The two slimes stood still for a moment before stretching upwards. It looked as if the two were examining each other. They then decreased to their original sizes, approaching each other and then becoming collectively one larger piece of Helix. Biff detracted his arm back to himself after noticing that the little Helix was moving more… As he examined it he noticed it was moving downwards, making its way off his arm and approaching his torso. The smaller pieces of goo could move, but once becoming combined it appeared faster and more intelligent with its movements. It was somewhat similar to how the separated gelatin acted during breakfast.

Biff peeled off the green gelatin from his coat, holding it by a pinch. It squirmed and jiggled around. It looked like it was trying to get free of his grasp.

Lola lowered her body to better examine it, "I think it's trying to tell you something," She pointed towards it as she commented, her voice filled with curiosity.

"It is acting… different," He replied, unsure of what to make of the development.

The clown yanked the slime out of Biff's gentle hold. It slipped in her hands, making it quickly fall to the ground. It sounded vaguely squishy as it went against the pavement. Biff quickly directed his attention back to Lola, giving her a stern but also disappointed look.

"What did I just say about being gentle with it?!" He nearly yelled.

Lola hushed him and then pointed at the substance again, "Look!" She then smiled.

It was a good development for once! Unlike previously where it was moving with no sense of direction or understanding, the little Helix was making a beeline to the exit of the tent. The trio looked at each other excitedly. The woman pulled out an oversized magnifying glass and then examined it closely. As it was trying to make its escape, she briefly kept it in its place by putting her shoe over it.

Spring Man snapped his fingers as he made his own realization, "It looks like it has an idea where Helix is," He said, "…Maybe it will take us to him? He can't be that far away now."

Lola bounced towards him and grinned, "That's what I'm thinking," She replied, teasingly pinching his cheek, "And I want to come along. I haven't gotten properly introduced to that viscous DNA man."

The clown still had a hold on his cheek. Spring Man looked at her and then at Biff with an awkward expression of panic. He recognized that Biff didn't appear entirely happy about the scenario, unbeknownst to the smiling Lola. The little mascot wasn't the biggest fan of her. He had something of a one-sided rivalry with the woman. Whenever she was present at one of his public appearances, whether it is him marketing his cookies or a world tour, she always knew how to sweep the attention back onto her. It annoyed him, frankly. However she has always been nice to him and is the only fighter of the current League that has willingly used the ARM themed with him, which was the Biffler. It was probably the performer in her that made her do those stunts. He felt like he couldn't say no to her because she has been a big help, but not telling someone no was what lead him into this situation to begin with. Biff let out a sigh and decided to look past his so called 'competition' with her.

He put his hands on his hips, "You can come _but,_ " His tone was serious but still remained affable, "After we find him I really need to take Helix back to the Labs. I can't lose him again."

That seemed like a good compromise. Lola moved her foot away from the goo, letting it wiggle its way out of the tent. She let go of Spring Man and then eagerly hopped out of the tent. The clown put on a beige deerstalker hat and brought out her magnifying glass from earlier.

She looked at the city with a determined expression, "The game is afoot!" She giggled, starting to follow the pieces of the green gelatin with vigilant eyes.

Her comedic reactions made Spring Man chuckle faintly as he rubbed his cheek. Biff was the second to leave with the young man following shortly behind him. What could go wrong with a stubby mascot, a boxer, and a candy clown looking for an unaware lab experiment wandering in a city that's completely unknown to him? At this point in time, the announcer wasn't sure what to expect. He had a good team with him though, creating some optimism for Biff in their collected search. In the corner of his mind though, he did wonder if the Labs were to find out how he was going to explain all of this. He could only hope, wherever Helix was, that he hadn't found himself in a world of trouble.


	7. 3:10 PM

3:10 pm

Lola led the way, bouncing by inflating and deflating herself instead of walking. The trio was following the Little Helix intently. Several of the city goers were curious and looked at the gelatin as if they were going to approach it. Biff and Spring Man teamed up to stop any passerby from interfering with their search. Biff had his arms stretched far with a humorless expression to discourage any interference. Spring Man on the other hand had a little more fun with the situation. He had Biff's sunglasses on, occasionally making comments to the people that kept their stares on the green goo.

"Lab experiment coming through," He called out, "Keep away from the slime! It might be nontoxic, but you do _not_ want to get it in your eyes." He then readjusted his shades.

Spring Man snickered faintly. It seemed that the boxer was taking his title of 'the bouncer' almost literally in this case. As proven earlier in the day, strange stares weren't anything new to Biff. He wished he could join in on the jokes with Spring Man and Lola but at this point he slightly feared for his job. Not that he thought he was going to lose it but he knew he and Max, along with some of the other higher ups of the ARMS League, would be in serious trouble if this doesn't end well. While he had that stern expression to keep people away, some of it was a reflection of what was going on in the little guy's mind. He was deep in thought, thinking of possible explanations to give and excuses. Biff, out of all of them, knew very well you did not want to make the ARMS Labs angry. His mind continued to drift until Lola delicately held him back, making him return to the real world.

"Why are we stopping?" He asked, looking back at the two.

Lola pointed at the traffic sign. The lights were currently green.

"We need to wait our turn, Biff!" She chuckled, finding his mild confusion to be adorable.

Biff stood in silence. Traffic was something he hadn't considered. The whole group had stopped, but as his vision wandered towards the street he realized that Little Helix was still on the move. His eyes widened and began to frantically push the button for the walk signal. He impatiently tapped his foot as the device let out several chimes. It got the command, but it remained unsafe to walk. Biff stretched out his arm and grabbed the collar of Spring Man's hoodie. He gently brought him down to his height. The man looked a little confused for a brief moment.

"How busy is this street?" Biff asked in a hushed tone, "We won't be waiting for too long, right?"

"Actually, we're probably going to be waiting for a while," Spring Man frowned, "This is County Line Road, it's probably the busiest street in the whole city."

Much to Biff's dismay, he was right. Even in the short amount of time that they had been standing there countless cars have passed by them. The traffic was consistent and there were no signs of it stopping anytime soon. Little Helix was already in the middle of the road. Luckily for it, it had no troubles with crossing the street – though some small pavement pebbles got mixed into the goo. It doesn't appear that affected its speed. If anything, with Biff's heightened paranoia it felt that the substance was moving _faster_ than it was earlier. Regardless, it was getting away and he couldn't afford going on another chase for it. Biff breathed in and exhaled, puffing out his chest. He had the horrible feeling he was about to do something stupid, but it was something that he felt needed to be done.

Biff turned around to face the duo behind him. His expression was serious, but not exactly confident. Both Spring Man and Lola curiously raised an eyebrow.

"You aren't going to like what I'm going to do," The announcer warned, "But you guys can only grab me if I get seriously hurt."

Spring Man and Lola looked at each other momentarily, mirroring confused looks. The two replied simply with a puzzled "What?" that was nearly in unison.

Biff faced the busy street again and promptly made a run for it. His friends immediately yelled out his name in a panic, extending their arms in an attempt to pull him back to the sidewalk. They quickly retracted back when a car almost hit the both of them. The car nearly got Biff as well, only missing him by several inches. The speed of the vehicle made the little guy nearly topple over. Lola and Spring Man kept frantically calling out his name as a massive truck was heading directly towards Biff. With him almost falling over, he managed to land on the hand protruding from the top of his head. Putting a little pressure on it, he used it to hop back onto his feet and out of danger's way. He stood proudly and raised his arms out of pure excitement. Spring Man and Lola could only stand in complete awe shock at what happened. They were beyond happy that he was okay, but the two never thought he had some tricks of his own. Lola frowned, eventually starting to grumble underneath her breath.

"Biff, what were you thinking?!" She yelled at him, "You could have gotten hurt!" She then stomped her foot.

With the loud traffic dividing them it was difficult to hold a conversation. Biff did appreciate her concern… And truthfully, he also completely understood her annoyance. He looked at them with a smile.

"Don't worry, I'm fine!" He yelled back, "The slime is getting away!" He pointed to the direction of where it was going.

Spring Man looked at the ground. It was only until then he realized that the Little Helix wasn't with the group and that it wasn't going to stop for nothing. Biff got off the very end of the street and walked onto the sidewalk. The goo was close to the announcer, still squirming away. As he made one swift step forward, he accidentally stepped on it. With the slick but yet sticky surface of the substance he immediately slipped and fell, tumbling down a back alleyway. After the stunt he just pulled, Lola and Spring Man looked in utter disbelief that, out of all things, was what ended up hurting him. At that moment the walk signal finally changed, allowing people to cross the street during a lull in the traffic.

"He's…" Spring Man wasn't sure what to say, "Probably okay." He grimaced.

Lola only face palmed in response.

Biff's slip was far from being over. Once he realized what was happening, he found himself rolling down hill in an increasing momentum. The area he was in was mostly a residential area. Instead of getting scarred up by pavement, he was toppling over smooth grass. He tried several times to reach an item, whether it was gardening supplies or a toy a child left out, to stop his speed with no avail. Eventually, near the end of the surprisingly long hill, there was a plank of wood sitting against a fence. Biff braced himself for what was going to happen – he rolled up the board and was able to make it over the metal fence. Once again the little guy felt pretty proud of his stunt… Only until his landing was ruined by him going head first directly into an open garbage bin. He laid there for a moment; mildly mocking himself internally for thinking that there was going to be something pleasant at the other end of the fence. Biff felt the Little Helix depart from his foot. He sat up and saw that it was making its way out of the container.

Biff poked his head out of the opening, feeling rather fed up with the jelly at this point, "Don't you dare pull another prank like that again!"

The substance paused, jiggled for a moment, and then went on with its quest to find Helix.


	8. 4:00 PM

4:00 pm

Biff dusted himself off as he went around the corner. While he was attempting to make himself look presentable again, the other remainder of his attention was kept on the little green slime that had consumed so much of his day. He stopped to remove a piece of wet tissue paper that got stuck on the ends of his jacket. _Gross_ , he thought. The mascot made the conscious decision to not think about where it was previously… And also to remind himself to go to the dry cleaners soon. After discarding it, he noticed a familiar face nearby. Biff immediately began to glare and began to approach him with his cheeks all puffed out in a huff.

"Helix!" He yelled, angrier and more disappointed than ever, "What did I tell you about wandering off?"

Helix jumped slightly when he heard his name being called out. He turned to look at Biff, twisting his gelatinous body in the process. He didn't seem to understand the tone of his caretaker's voice, greeting the little guy with a big smile. The experiment reached for the announcer, attempting to remove a banana peel off of his head. Biff batted Helix's hands away and then discarded the garbage himself. Helix remained to stand there rather innocently while Biff had his hands on his hips. The expressions between the two were greatly different. The slime that Biff had been following finally made it back to the rest of Helix. The pavement pebbles remained to be stuck in him, sinking to his right foot. Helix curiously looked at the bottom of him, lifted his leg and then shook it wildly. The stones then flew out. They looked wet and sticky with a subtle hint of green to them. Biff stood in silence briefly, looking at the rocks and then to Helix, but quickly went back to his rantings.

"I've been looking for you to close to…" Biff paused, took out his phone and then referenced its clock, "For close to four hours!" He raised his voice again, putting a heavy emphasis on the time.

His grin didn't change in the slightest. If anything, Helix looked rather excited. He pointed to the building they were outside of and then looked away. They were standing out of a store. It appeared to be a normal convenience mart of no particular significance. It was at that moment that Biff realized his scolding weren't coming across to the lab experiment. He shook his head and groaned.

"What are you looking at?" He frowned, peering into the window.

His eyes widened in shock with his mouth slightly agape. He couldn't believe it – they actually had Helix juice here! It was presented with a rather big display near the entrance of the store. It was brightly colored and featured an illustration of Helix with the pink beverage. Beside him included all the available flavors and their nutritional value. Any potential customer was bound to see it; it was impossible to ignore. While he didn't realize this earlier, clearly the ARMS Laboratory was a lot more serious about this then he originally thought. He rolled his eyes when he realized that the display seemed to be expertly covering the snack aisle, which coincidentally is where the Biff cookies were also located. While he was still rather mad at the Laboratory mascot, Helix's excitement was somewhat endearing. He seemed really happy about the attention. Given how quickly they dumped Helix into Biff's care, to him this might be the most that the ARMS Labs have ever truly cared about him outside of being a fighter.

Biff cracked a small smile, "I hope people like it, but," His warm expression quickly went back to being disappointed but without the anger, "I'm really being serious here. You could have gotten hurt."

A thought then came to his head: How did Helix even get here to begin with? At first glance, Biff didn't notice anything different about the store or the neighborhood he found himself in. Everything was quiet until a loud and sudden 'pop!' ruined the peace, after the racket came confetti surrounding the building with fanfare following it shortly afterwards. With the disruptive noises and the blaring music it made Biff jump. He immediately looked at Helix, who was confused but seemed to enjoy the unanticipated festivity. As the melody continued to play, Biff began to recognize it as the anthem of the ARMS Laboratory. The press soon arrived to the scene, along with a crowd surrounding the small building. Both Biff and Helix winced and covered their eyes from the flashing lights of the cameras.

"Welcome everyone!" A man emerged from the right corner of the building, "You're witnessing ARMS history in the making!"

Biff began to move away from the show. He ducked down, covered what he could of his face with the collar of his jacket, and slowly moved towards the corner that the announcer came from. It was the only area that had any space for freely moving around. He had his attention more on the crowd than what was in front of him. He eventually bumped into someone's leg, which he immediately looked up at the individual.

"I'm sorry, I'm just trying to get out of here-" Biff began to apologize, but was cut short by the person.

"Biff!" The man grinned and held out his hand, "I wasn't expecting to see you here!"

As soon as Biff encountered him, he _knew_ he had seen this man earlier. Hearing his unctuous voice again made him remember. It was the representative that gave him Helix to take care of. The two looked at each other awkwardly. Biff knew he had to explain why he was here, but he was failing to come up with anything good to say.

"Quite a show, eh?" The man looked up and grinned widely.

He broke the silence, but the awkwardness remained.

"You guys are already releasing the Helix juice?" Biff frowned, pointing backwards at the store behind him, "The way you talked about it this morning you made it sound like it was still a work in progress."

The representative put his attention back onto the mascot.

"Whoops, that's far from the truth," The man gave him a forced smile, "We've actually been kind of rushed for this project. We were planning to release it during the first fight of the Grand Prix, but plans changed. The boss said it would be better to get it on shelves sooner than, and I quote, "to have that oblong pea brain help with the marketing"."

Biff immediately gave him a subtle, but still noticeable scowl.

"I… shouldn't have said that," He frowned, putting his hands up in defense, "Those were her words, not mine!"

Biff rolled his eyes and let out a sign. There was no need to get into an argument about it.

The mascot scratched the back of his head, "So… is the deal of me trying that juice off now?" He asked, unsure again of where this was leading.

"Actually, I really have to thank you," The representative actually looked quite friendly towards him for once, not fawning at all.

Biff was pleasantly surprised by this, "Really? What do you mean?"

"I was trying to tell some of the higher ups that making the juice's debut today was a bad idea," The man explained, "I told them that you had Helix, and that you were preparing to do a photo shoot with him somewhere. They didn't listen to me – they were too busy getting all of this set up, to the point a lot of us weren't even answering our phones. It's awesome that you actually got the _real_ Helix to be here. Originally all we had was this."

The representative moved aside. Behind him, near one of the ARMS Labs moving trucks, was an inflatable tube man that resembled Helix.

"So this is great," He began again, "The kids absolutely love him. But I have to ask, how did you learn about this?"

Biff was silent, looking at him with a completely blank stare.

"Uhh," He started before coming up with an answer, "I saw one of the ARMS Labs trucks during lunch and made a lucky guess?" He quickly said and awkwardly smiled.

The man shrugged, giving him a pleased smile. He then moved aside from Biff and approached the announcer of the Helix themed event. The representative tapped his shoulder, catching his attention, and then whispered into his ear.

"Oh," The host listened intently to the man and then began to talk, "I'm getting some intel that we have another special guest here!"

Both Helix and Biff looked at each other, all smiles. Biff went back onto the stage, waving his arms around happily as the audience called out his name. Helix scooped up the little guy into his arms and playfully threw him upwards. For the rest of their time at that nondescript convenience mart, the employees of the ARMS Labs mingled with fans and had plenty of product samples to go around. Biff basked in his own popularity while the attention was briefly on him, but he mostly stayed on the sidelines of the event before leaving. It wasn't his, after all. He could not deny it was difficult getting to this point but he ended up enjoying the outcome of it. While he still had his own suspicions towards the juice and the company that's making it, it did make him happy to see Helix meeting and having fun with his fans. After all that attention and exploring the city, Biff was looking forward to the trip back home and some relaxation…


	9. 5:38 PM

5:38 pm

Slowly the day was coming to an end. It wasn't as productive as Biff wanted it to be, but he could relax now that the ARMS Laboratories might not come to him with more 'favors' any time soon. He looked out the window of his private limo as he watched the skyline of the city come into view. The setting sun was making the ARMS League headquarters shine brilliantly. He leaned back into his seat as his mind drifted off slightly. He then heard a distinct 'ding!' coming from his phone, stopping him from completely zoning out. He immediately checked it and saw that he received a text from Lola Pop. Biff made the realization that after the trio got split up, he didn't bother to find them or even send them a message telling them that he was okay. Luckily, it didn't look like the girl was too mad. It seemed for the rest of her day she spent it hanging out with Spring Man. She attached a cute little selfie of the two of them at a pastry shop. She did ask Biff if he and Helix were okay, but the text was mostly explaining what they were up to. Biff smiled while reading her comments and shortly afterwards he explained how the rest of his day was going, along with a description of what was going on with Helix. His words didn't do the event justice, wishing now that he snapped a picture or two to send to the candy clown.

Finishing his texts, he then went to his virtual calendar to check up on his notes. Biff usually knew what day of the week it was, but it only dawned on him at that moment that it was Friday. Now it was almost a Friday _night_. Every third week of the month the announcer would always try to catch up with Max Brass. While the two were often considered the faces of the sport and were always seen in partnership when it came to marketing, their lives aren't as intertwined as the merchandise would lead you to believe. They're lifelong friends, but their careers and equally busy schedules often prevented them from hanging out. It was five years ago when Max came up with a solution to the problem: A guy's night out! It was one night where they go to a casual restaurant, order a few drinks, and just chat mostly about what their lives. Biff excitedly gripped his phone and waved his little feet in excitement. He knew he had some whoppers to share with Max – all from this day alone!

Biff met up with him at their favorite hangout spot. Both he and Max had a love for tropical environments and warm weather; it was no surprise that the eatery was themed with those aesthetics, albeit a very Americanized understanding of them. The restaurant took most of its motif from touristy Hawaiian locations. They had drinks that looked like volcanos while hula girl bobble heads and Tiki masks were decorated in about every nook and cranny of the building. It's always Luau here. The two were sitting at its small bar area. Biff was a little short for the stool, having to put an extra pillow on the chair so he could look across the counter. Max was a massive man, but he looked all the bigger sitting next to the mascot.

"Really?" The commissioner let out a hearty laugh, "That's what they wanted?" He asked with an amused disbelief.

Biff shrugged, "I thought it was weird too," He replied, "They have a lot of faith in it. I'm kind of surprised with all their creations they thought Helix is the best."

Max chuckled again, still faintly laughing at the scenarios Biff got himself in. While he had seen Helix in action several times, this was the first he ever heard of someone interacting with Helix that wasn't a casual spar.

"So, what do you think about him?" He calmed himself and then looked at the little guy with some sincerity, "Do you think he's Grand Prix material?"

Biff paused for a moment to think over the question.

"I don't really know," He confessed, "He seems too… unaware of what he's doing. I'm afraid he would get confused in the ring."

His voice trailed off as a desert a waitress was carrying caught his attention. He nudged Max and then subtly pointed at it.

"But honestly," Biff whispered to him, "He kept reminding me of something like _that._ "

A plate of jello jiggled as the woman walked towards a nearby table. It was green, but it appeared to have berry chunks added in for extra flavor. The two friends looked at each other and laughed. It was an accurate comparison to Helix, particularly after he ate.

"That doesn't surprise me," Max replied after his reaction to the joke, "The ARMS Labs are getting weirder and weirder, Biff. At this point they're trying to play God – I don't want to know what their next fighter is going act like." He shook his head and took a sip of his drink.

His face looked serious, if not somewhat solemn after his comment. Biff knew why and completely understood why their business was bothering him so much. There was a part of him that wanted to continue the conversation, but given the atmosphere… It was probably better to keep everything lighthearted. The mascot brought out his phone and looked at his screen.

"Uh, anyway," Biff began with a mild cough, trying to cover up some of his own awkwardness, "Spring Man tried to help me out with my search. He's a good kid."

He then showed his phone to the commissioner.

"I think he's got a crush on a clown though," Biff said bemusedly, curious of what he thought of the photo Lola shared.

Max grinned when he looked at the screen. While he was an easily amused man, he didn't appear to find it as strange as Biff did.

"Hah, I can't really judge," He shrugged as he set his drink down, "Dating a clown is a little less crazy than my last serious relationship. I wish them the best of luck, though that's not really my business."

Biff frowned slightly after his response, quickly directing his attention back to his phone. Max has been doing that a lot lately – making little indirect references to _her_. It was only a quick little joke, but it still bothered him. As the years went on, he found it more and more difficult to understand what he even saw in _her_ to begin with. Sure she was smart, and the two of them had a mutual love and fascination for ARMS… But that was beside the point in Biff's mind. He thought he was all the more loyal towards the commissioner and had the same kind of passion directed at the sport as well. As he put his phone aside, he had to remind himself not to get into a jealous tizzy. Besides, _she_ wasn't worth that attention anyway! As Biff obsessed internally over the nature of him and Max's relationship, their waitress put a serving of chips and specialty dip near them. The man excitedly held up his arms, eagerly yelling out "Yes!" before bring the appetizer closer to them. This woke Biff from his thoughts – it was finally time to eat!

Max was about to reach for his first chip, but the announcer quickly grabbed the bowl and began to wolf down the food. The man sat in silence as he watched him. How was it possible for such a little guy to consume that much in a matter of seconds? Regardless, it didn't look like he was going to stop shoveling in those chips anytime soon. Max didn't know if he should be impressed or a little worried for him. He kept out of Biff's reach, but he eventually was able to snag one of the corn ships for himself. He dipped it in the creamy sauce and continued to watch his friend amusedly.

"Uh, are you okay?" He eventually asked before taking a bite of the snack.

Biff looked at him. Crumbs and the dipping sauce scattered around his mouth. His cheeks were puffed out from all the food that he had packed in him. He paused and then slowly swallowed the massive serving. He grabbed a napkin to wipe off his face before answering.

"I haven't eaten all day," Biff whined jokingly, "These are the best chips I have ever eaten!"

That last comment was probably a hyperbole – not having a proper meal can make any kind of food taste absolutely amazing regardless of its quality. The mascot pushed the serving aside.

"But really, enough about me," He looked at the commissioner curiously, "What have you been up to?"

Max peered in the bowl. There wasn't much left of the chips aside from a few crumbs. He grabbed it and poured the remains into his mouth as Biff spoke. He shrugged as he prepared to reply.

"I did absolutely nothin' compared to what you did today," He confessed, "It was mostly a training day. It was the same old routine – I wanted to spice things up a bit and tried lifting your assistant while she was sitting in her chair."

Max paused for effect.

Biff looked at him curiously, "…And how did that go?"

"Terrible!" The commissioner roared with laughter at himself, "She's fine, but I broke her chair. She got _really_ mad. The rest of my time was spent trying to find a new one online for her."

Biff snickered, "Yeah, she has some kind of tailbone problem," He explained as he nursed his drink, "I'm pretty sure she had some kind of specialty chair."

"Yeah, I didn't know that until today," Max frowned, "Poor thing. I think I need to work on that new exercise plan a little more."

His voice trailed off as something off in the distance caught his attention. Biff, meanwhile, had his focus on his drink. The commissioner patted him on the back and then pointed straight forward, with his arm stretched out slightly. The announcer immediately turned his head to the direction.

"Whoa, look at that!" The man exclaimed, getting off of his seat, "I haven't seen one of those in 30 years!"

It appeared that some of the extra staff just finished installing a jukebox. Not a novelty one – a true, still fully working model. It absolutely beamed in the corner. The machine looked like it had plenty of artists to choose from and, more importantly to the restaurant, looked hungry for quarters as well. Biff hopped off his footstool and approached Max, who was very impressed by the quality of it. The announcer wasn't as enamored by it as his friend was but it was fun seeing one again.

"They still make those?" Biff asked with a suspension of disbelief.

"Guess so, that's news to me!" Max turned to look at his side, reaching in his pockets to grab a few quarters, "Got any money on you, Biff?"

He stared at the commissioner briefly before checking his wallet.

"Yeah," The mascot replied and then looked at him curiously, "Why do you ask?"

The herculean boxer had several quarters in his possession. He rattled them in his hand, looking at Biff with a wide smile.

"Why don't we turn this joint into a party?" He asked, "We'll say we're celebrating the announcement of the next Grand Prix or something."

Biff experienced a lot of spontaneity just in one day. He found it a little humorous that Max felt the need to give a reason for the celebration. However, as sudden as that suggestion was, it sounded like fun. He returned the mischievous smile that the man had.

"Sure!" He jumped up and eagerly approached the machine.

The commissioner put two coins into the jukebox. The window that showcased the selection of music immediately lit up, ready to play whenever.

"Hey everyone," Max yelled, catching everyone in the restaurant's attention unsurprisingly, "Let's check out the new jukebox!"

The surrounding groups of people only stared at him.

"And the drinks are on my buddy, Biff!" He then added.

It was only after his additional statement where he got a reaction from the other customers, with them cheering and some even waving their hands excitedly. Biff joined in with enthusiasm but stopped when he began to think about what Max just said.

"Wait a minute, what?"


	10. 7:00 PM

7:00 pm

"Sir, you really need to get out of the car."

Following those words, Biff woke up. He was looking directly upwards at one of the harsh, bright lights inside of the limo. He was already bleary eyed and dazed – it wasn't the best view to wake up with. He laid there for a moment with his eyes squinted. He slowly but surely sat himself upright, hiccuping faintly. To only add to his wooziness, his head was pounding madly. In an attempt to soothe it, he tried using the hand on the top of his crown to rub his forehead. He shook his head, blinked, and then looked at the man in front of him. It was one of his bodyguards that were usually positioned outside of his house.

"What happened?" The mascot groaned.

The guard's expression didn't change in the slightest. He remained professionally stoic.

"You passed out at the restaurant," He explained, "The commissioner described you as 'the biggest lightweight he's ever seen'."

The man retelling Max's comment triggered a few memories. While Biff doesn't remember blacking out exactly, he did know the party became hectic quickly. He wasn't even planning to have shots of flaming soda that night, but it was impossible to resist when there was an eager crowd surrounding him. His headache persisted but Biff was slowly gaining back his consciousness.

"Yeah, where is the commish?" He asked while holding in a burp, "Is he still there?"

The bouncer reached into the pockets of his jacket and handed him some cash.

"He retired from the party shortly after you fainted," He answered, "He called me to take you back to your mansion."

Biff looked at the money.

"He also wanted me to make sure you got this," The bodyguard added, "It's for the drinks you bought."

The announcer smiled. It looked like quite a bit of money but truthfully Biff had no idea how much was even spent while he was there. Regardless, he appreciated the gesture. He trusted that Max gave him the right amount… However much it was. He looked off to his side and saw his trench coat lying on the floor of the limo. He grabbed it and pocketed the cash. Biff attempted to exit the car, but his sense of balance was failing him. The man was fast enough to help him not fall head first onto the ground.

"Easy now," He spoke carefully, "Do you want me to help you into the house?"

Biff paused and thought about his question after approaching the door. Sure, his movements weren't confident but he could _walk_ at the very least _._

"I appreciate it," He finally answered, "But I'm fine, really."

One of the guard's eyebrows rose as he watched him go inside of the mansion. It was relatively easy for the unsteady mascot until he was met with the massive stairs. He examined it and stood there in complete silence for a moment.

"Okay," He raised his voice in hopes that the man could still hear him, "I need some help with this."

The bouncer immediately sprinted towards him, closing the door on his way in. He grabbed Biff and went up the stairs. He held the little guy in a bridal style – it seemed to be the easiest way to navigate while holding him. Luckily for the guard, the stairs were right outside of Biff's bed room. What could have taken a matter of minutes for the small mascot took a fraction of that time for the man. He gently put him back onto his feet once they arrived to the second floor. Biff wobbled slightly, but quickly caught himself by grabbing the side of the door.

"Anything else, sir?" The bodyguard promptly asked after completing his employer's request.

Biff looked back at him with a tired but faint smile.

"No thanks," He replied, "I'll let you know if I need anything else though."

The guard nodded and then went back to his original post. The announcer began to fear that wasn't going to be the only time he'll need his assistance – he hoped he wasn't going to need a bucket by his bed in the late hours. Biff looked at his alarm clock and saw how early it was, the night had only just begun. He was probably going to wake up early tomorrow, but he yawned as he saw his bed. His bowtie was already undone to begin with; he set it aside on his nightstand along with his phone. He can put up the accessory later when he was feeling a bit better. He grabbed his covers and crawled into bed. He wrapped himself up in the warm blankets, lying there peacefully until he heard a 'ding!' from his phone. He opened his eyes and groaned tiredly as he reached for it. He received another text, which was a link to an article that was entitled: 'New Carvings Found at an Ancient Misanga Temple Resembling the ARMS Condition'. It looked like an interesting read, given there's plenty of popular theories claiming that the mythical powers of the Misanga and ARMS are somehow connected. Despite this Biff yawned and put the phone back onto the nightstand, turning on his side as he cuddled his comfy blankets.

It was a topic of interest for another day.


End file.
